Dutch Interior

Joan Miro painted Dutch Interior I in 1928. This painting is very un-realistic even more so than his previous works of art. Dutch Interior shows the very basic form of a man playing a guitar. He is the main focus with a dog, cat, pictures on the wall, and a window that the man is leaned up against.

The man playing guitar is a very complicated figure. The body is a huge white blob with no definite separation to any body part. Starting from the top of the body, the head has a red circle at the top that represents the brain and holds the eyes and mouth. The eyes are two bird like figures that face each other while the mouth is another bird like figure that has white teeth coming from all directions. The ears are less recognizable: the right has the most ear-like shape while the left ear resembles an antenna. The left side has the same arm, although the hand is just a triangle. The white man figure has one leg that comes down his body but two feet that are sitting out from his body.

The dog and cat are white figures much like the man they are not realistic. All three figures are drawn similarly and I think Miro did that on purpose to show that these are the living figures in his painting. Both the dog and cat eyes are made up of the same bird like figures.

There is a figure on the right of the painting that is flying next to the man. This figure is red with wings, horns coming out of its head, with a monstrous face. Believing this is the devil can explain why Miro painted the living figures white, showing purity. This is another one of Miro’s paintings that represents religious icons directly through his work. The antenna like ear on the man could be Miro trying to figure out who and what to listen to in life. Deciding whether to stay pure or listen to the devil that is constantly by his side. The man does have hints of red on his body; the red circle on his head and a right hand that is playing the guitar.

The man is positioned with back against the window, which holds a very busy city outside. Having the back toward the window is an example of the world around Miro could be his representation of blocking out the world around him. Listening to only who is inside of him, whatever that may be. But it is obvious that whoever is playing the guitar is isolating himself from the world around him only to concentrate on the present, the guitar.